Fuel injection system



April 20, 1943. w. M. PATE ETAL FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM Filed Nov. 6, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet l f Lm.. m m .m d m m .Q a m .5 .52. 1 A j M.. 4. Maw W P w e w w w f. .H w 6 f M; u Z yf 9 8 4. Z l 9. f. f im@.SsmzW%WMW%WU% I d.,J w///. Nnmnllrlll .l f. .5 J f April 20, 1943. w. M; PATE Erm. i 231-6387,

FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM Filed Nov. e, 1939 5 Sheets-*Sheet 2 M. m M m m INVENTORJ,

BY 6MM ATTQRNEYS.

April zo, 1943.- w. M. PATE HAL 2,316,887

FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM Filed Nov. 5, 15339 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 u INV ENI ORS ATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 20, 1943 UNITEDy STATE FUEL INJECTION srsrnM .Walker M. Pate and Harvey E. Burgdorf, Ferguson, Mo. v

Application November 6, 1939, Serial No. 303,002

2 Claims. (Cl. 12S-32) This invention pertains to internal combustion engines of the fuel-injection type, and more particularly to the fuel injection and combustion features of such engines.

Inthe internal combustion engine of this type, of which the Diesel engine is an example, the development 'of high speed engines has been retarded somewhat by difficulties in overcoming the tendency to knock. This tendency may be con# sidered inherent in this type of engine on account of the fact that the air charge must be highly compressed in order to eect ignition, and the 'fact that combustion of the fuel adds to that pressure soas lte produce a high `peak pressure. Various arrangements have been proposed to overcome this tendency or to prevent or retard the development of a high peak pressure, and some oi these have been fairly successful; for instance, the provisions of a so-called turbulence chamber, connected with the combustion chamber to promote a rapid mixture of the 'fuel and air and to provide additional volume in which the initial explosion may .take place so as to avoid a rapid rise in pressure, Another arrangement has been to provide a so-called precombustion chamber, which is connected with the main combustlon chamber usually througha somewhat restricted` passage, the mixture being ignited first in the pre-combustion chamber and the pressure and name developed thereby transferred to the main combustion chamber through the restricted passage, so that the pressure acting on the piston rises more gradually. One of the objects of this invention is to provide an improved method for retarding the rapid rise of pressure in an engine cylinder of this type.

Another object is .to provide a structure providing a chamber which may act 'as a relief.

chamber to receive and store a portion of the air charge and into which the pressure created by combustion of the charge in the cylinder may be relieved during the early portion of the power stroke. f

Another object is to provide such a nozzle stmcture with Vimproved Ameans' to .facilitate cleaning vthe same and for preventing an accu- Vmulation of carbon therein.

Further objects will appear from the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is asectional view of a part of an engine bloei; and an injection unit embodying this invention; V v

Figure 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a top view of Figure l;

Figure 4 is an enlarged detail of Figure 1:v Figure 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of another nozzle unit embodying this invention;

Figure 6 is a section on line 6--6' of Figure 5;

Figure 'l is a top view of Figure 5; Figure 8 is an enlarged detail of Figure 5;

Figure 9 is a section on line 9-9 of Figure 10; and4 Figure 10 is a partial vertical section of an enf gine showing another injection device embodying this invention. Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly Figures 1 to 4, l designates the engine block or that part of it in which the fuel iniection vnozzle is mounted. This part has a bore 2 communicating with the engine cylinder 3. The injection unit, which is removably mounted in the bore 2, comprises in this embodiment a body I which may be arranged to fit in the bore 2 and may be provided with a suitable shoulder 5, or other means adapted to receive fastening means, such as a yoke 6 secured in place by studs 1. The body l is provided with a fuel duct 8 and means for attachment thereto, so as to communicate with said duct, of a fuel supply line 9. The duct 8 may be provided with an enlarged portion l0 in which may be mounted one or more check pressure therein has attained a certain minimum value at which injection is to take place.

Another object is to provide such a relief chamber which will receiveexcess pressure during the early portion ofthe power stroke and thereafter, when the pressure in the cylinder has fallen, will returnv its portion of the charge to the cylinder' so as to prevent a too rapid fall in pressure and to insure complete combustion of the fuel. I

Another object is to provideoan injection nozzle structure havingsuch a chamber embodied in the structure of Athe nozzle and which' is removable 'as -a4 unit` from the engine.

Mounted on the body l in any suitable manner, as by means of a sleeve I2, is a. fuel nozzle I3 having a fuel duct I4 communicating with the duct I.v The sleeve I2 may be provided with a. screw-threaded connection to the body l and with an internal shoulder I5 adapted to receive a complementary -shoulder on the nozzle I3, so that when the sleeve is screwed up on the body Y4 the nozzle will seat against the lowermost of the check valves Il. If desired, suitable gaskets may be placed between the nozzle and the valves and between successive valves so as to prevent leakage of fuel under the high pressure necessary for injection.

Mounted on the body 4, as for instance by means of a screw-threaded connection with the sleeve I2, is a hollow cap I8 providing therewithin a relief chamber or air storage chamber I1. The lower end of the chamber iI tapers to a restricted inlet and outlet passage I8, which may be provided with a flared mouth as indicated at I9. The relation of the nozzle I3 to the chamber I1 is such that the nozzle extends through a major portion of that chamber so that its tip stands comparatively close to the passage I8. The tip of the/nozzle is provided with a spray opening 2li which is directed so that a Jet of fuel ejected therefrom will be projected through the passage Il into the cylinder 3.

In order to prevent the accumulation of carbon within the duct Il a cleaning implement 2| may be loosely mounted within the duct Il. As shown more particularly inFigure 4, the implement 2l may be provided with a spiral groove 22 similar to that formed in the ordinary twist drill and .may have a conical end 23 adapted to rest on the similarly shaped internal surface of the nozzle I3. The effect of the spiral groove 22 is to react with the stream of fuel which passes through the duct I4 at a high velocity at each injection so as to cause the implement 2| to rotate. Such rotation tends to loosen any carbon deposit which may tend to form within the duct I4, and the high velocity stream of fuel will carry any such loosened carbon out of the nozzle. As the implement ZI operates at each injection there is no chance for any deposit of carbon to form.

In the operation of this device it is believed that the following takes place, although this explanation is based on theory:

After the engine has operated the duct 8--I4 is filled with fuel. During the compression stroke the check valves II, of course, are closed and fuel is held within the duct Il. The volume of this duct is preferably made suihcient to carry a complete charge of fuel for one injection or a little more. In the beginning of the compression stroke both the cylinder 3 and the chamber incoming air. This counterow is effective to start atomization of the fuel immediately upon injection. This is very desirable in an engine of this type, as it prepares the fuel for more rapid ignition and helps to reduce the peak pressure. At this instant the temperature in the chamber I'I is not high enough for ignition and therefore no combustion takes place in this chamber at this time. The fuel jet as it issues Il are lled with air. As the air is compressed in the cylinder 3 during the compression stroke a portion of the air charge in the cylinder is forced through the passage Il intorthe chamber I1. The air in the chamber I1 increases in presl sure as the pressure in cylinder 8 increases, but

the pressure in the chamber `I'I is always less than that in 'the cylinder since during the compression stroke its lpressure is derived from that in the cylinder, and on account/of the restric-A tion of the passage Il the flow to the chamber Il is retarded. On account of this retardation. the pressure in the chamber-I1 does not become high enough to cause ignition (particularly as the mixture therein is too lean) before ignition takes place in the cylinder.

-At the proper point in the stroke, usually a few degrees ahead ofy top dead center, the fuel injection pump operates to suddenly raise the Pressure in the 'ductl I. When this pressure rises to a value suillcient to open the check valves Il, injection takes place by a jet oi'l fuel issuing from the spray opening 2l. As the compression stroke is not yet. quite finished at the moment oi' injection... air is still flowing into the chamber I1 throughthepassage Il. 'Ihlejetoffuelissu-I ing from the opening 2l is at this time projected through the passage Il against the flow of the l5 from the passage I8 into the cylinder 3, however, encounters a pressure and temperature suilicient for ignition and is ignited in the combustion chamber of the cylinder 3. When ignition takes place, of course, the pressure in the combustion chamber of the cylinder l rises rapidly. However, this pressure may relieve itself to some extent hy a further flow of 1 gas through the passage I8 intol the chamber Il. This chamber therefore act:- for a certainperiod as a relief chamber, receiving excess pres-- sure from the main combustion chamber and thereby tending to prevent a too rapid increase in pressure in the cylinder. This period probably lasts until *the piston passes top center and for a certain time thereafter as the piston moves downwardly under the explosion pressure. During the latter part of this period, however, the gas flowing into the chamber Il is composed partly of products of combustion and probably also contains some unburned fuel. Accordingly, the mixture in the chamber I'I becomes gradually richer while its pressure rises and het gases flow in through the passage I8. Accordingly, at a later portion of the stroke, combustion will begin in the chamber Il and its pressure will be increased by virtue of such combustion. Meanwhile, the piston is moving downwardly and the pressure in the cylinder 3 is falling. At a cer tain point these pressures reverse, that in the chamber Il becoming higher than that in the cylinder. At this point therefore the iiow of gas will also reverse, and the gas stored in the chamber IT will flow through the passage I8 into the cylinder I. This helps to maintain the pressure in the cylinder for a longer period and also probably supplies additional air to assist in completing combustion in the main combustion chamber. Accordingly, the effect of the chamber II- will be to relieve the excess pressure in the cylinder before its peak pressure is reached and after such peak has been passed will tend to prevent the pressure in the cylinder from falling as rapidly as it otherwise would. The net result, therefore, will be to flatten out somewhat vthe pressure curve in the cylinder. This action, by preventing too sharp a peak in the pressure, Vwill reduce the tendency to knock, `and by maintaining the pressure during the later part of the stroke, will assist in improving the low-speed torque characteristics of the engine.

It will be noted that during that part of the power stroke after injection ceases and the valves II are closed, any tendency for fuel to drip from the nozzle I 3 may cause a small quantity of fuel to collect at the'tip of the nozzle. Since there is at this time a rush of gas out of the chamber I1. such drippage will be caught in that rush and f carried out into the main combustion chamber where it is intimately mixed and'burned with the charge therein.V Thereafter, during the combustion stroke the inrush of air will strip oil' any furtherrdrippage andlatomize the samein the .Wr II in preparation for the next power It be noted also thats. complete charge of fuel or a little more is held in the nozzle between strokes and, as this nozzle is positioned in the chamber l1 and a major portion thereof is surrounded by and immersed in the gas in that chamber, the heating of this gas and thereby the nozzle and the metal parts connected thereto during the operation of the engine operates to preheat the fuel charge just prior to its injection into the cylinder. The pressure in the chamber I'I during a certain part of the power stroke after ignition is higher than in the combustion chamber because ignition has taken place in the chamber I1 and caused combustion therein. This combustion is now confined to the latter chamber and, on account of the restriction of the passage I8, rises to a` higher value than in the combustion chamber, and, accordingly, the tempera- Y seated upon the seat 2l so that the ow of fuel from the nozzle is prevented until the injection pump operating in the line 5 in the usualanan ner, produces a pressure which, acting upon the piston 25, is suihcient to move that piston' a'gainst the pressure of the spring 5l and open thei valve 25. The adjustment of the spring is such that ture of the confined gas is higher and heats the surrounding metal to a higher point. 'I'his heat is communicated to the charge being held in the nozzle. Furthermore, such preheating is` carried out without danger of forming a carbon deposit as the cleaning implement 2l disposes of such deposit as fast as it may form. Itwill be noted that the injection unit comprising the body 5 and the parts carried thereby, namely the nozzle and the cap I6 providing the relief chamber, form a unitary assembly of simple structure, which may be removed from the engine by simply loosening the .studs 'I vand removing the yoke 5. Accordinglynthis unit is easily removable for replacement if defective.- or for cleaning if necessary without disturbing other parts of the system other than the .supply line 5.

Figures 5 to 8, inclusive, illustrate an injector of the valved type embodying this invention. In

this structure the body I is provided with a cen-- trai fuel` duct 80 extending along the injector unit the pressure necessary to open the valve is also u suiiicient to inject the fuel from the spray opening 8l through the passage Il into the cylinder l,

the injector of Figure 5 being mounted in a similar relation to the cylinder to that shown in Figure 1.

This Varrangement operates in a manner very similar to that described for the arrangement of Figure 1. The cap I0 is of similar construction and the nozzle I3 is similarly positioned therein.

39 heated vfuel is injected and corresponding to the duct 8 in Figure 1.' A

supply duct 8l communicates with the outer portion of the duct 80 and with a supply connection $2, which connects the supply line 9 to the injector. Removably mounted in the duct 80 andan extension thereof in the nozzle I3, is the stem 24 of a valve 25 arranged to seat in a suitable valve seat 28 in the tip of the nozzle I2. In this structure the valve 25 may be provided with an extension 21 extending through the spray opening B5, corresponding to the spray opening 2d in Figure 1. l

The elongated valve stem 2l extends outwardly to the outer' portion of the body l and near its outer end is provided with a piston 2B which is Y lapped to a close fit in a cylinder 29 formed in the body l. The cylinder 2l and'the piston 2l are located outwardly beyond the supply duct II, so that the supply pressure may work against the inner side ofthe piston. An escape valve" may be provided for removing any airwhich may become entrapped in the supply duct;

A continuation of the valve stem beyond the piston 28 may be provided, as indicated at Il, and on this extension a hardened washer 22 may be mounted to receive the pressure of a spring 3l, which 1s retained by a hood or cap 34 secured on the body l by a screw-threaded connection 25,

or other suitable attachment. AY bleed-off 'line 38 may be attached to the cap 24 to receive any l leakage of fuel which may pass the piston 25 and return such fuel to the supply system in any suitable manner well known in the art. In this case also the injector assembly may be secured in the engine by means of a yoke 5 engaging a shoulder 5. Y

'in this structure the fuel entering from the A charge of fuel is held in the passages 21 between strokes and is preheated by the burning of lfuel in the chamber I1, as already described. This preinto the cylinder 3- when the valve 25 opens. In `this construction the piston 2l is placed near the outer end of the stem 24. This has the double advantage of 'making it 4unnecessary to lead the fuel supply duct 8| along the body tothe inner end thereof in order to join the duct 55 inwardly ofthe piston, and, by placing the piston at a point spaced from the cylinder, the same may be operated at allower temperature and therefore troubles due to lvariation in thermal expansion of the piston and the body 4 are reduced. With this construction also the movementof the stem 24 operates to prevent any formationof a carbon deposit in the ducts 31.

Another advantage of this structure is that the hood 24 may be removed without disturbing the connection of the body l to the engine, and there by the piston 25 and the valve may be removed for inspection or cleaning or replacement. This renders it unnecessary to dismount the entire injector assembly in order to clean the valve.

It will be seen, therefore, that this invention provides an injector which may be embodied in a simple assembly unit removable as a unitfrom the engine. The structure is such that it may be embodied in a simple cylindrical form which may l be slipped into a simple bore hole in the cylinder block. The arrangement by kwhich the relief chamber I1 is embodied in this removable `unit makes it^easy to keep this chamber clean. It also makes it easy to provide a standard unit embodying diif'erent sizes of relief chambers so Athat the chamber size maybe changed in a given engine by simply interchangingthecap Il and nozzle Il on the injector unit. The structure lends itself readily lto application to either the open injection type, as shown in Figure i, or the valved type, ashown in Figure 5. In either case, cleaning and maintenance of the unit'in good operating order arel simplified.

The. arrangement of the chamber I1 and theV relation to it o1' the nozzle` Il aresuch that the chamber may function as a relief chamber,as

' distinguished from aY precombustion chamber. It

is known that no ignition takes place in the case of high-speed engines.

chamber I1 prior to ignition in the cylinder 3. The fuel projected from the nozzle passes through the passage Il before it is/ignited. This passage is accomplished during the inflow of air to the chamber I1 and in a direction counter to such flow. While a certain small quantity of fuel may be stripped from the marginal portions of the jet by this inflow of air and carried into the chamber l1, the mixture in this chamber is too lean and the temperature too low to cause ignition until past top dead-center on the power stroke.

It has been found that this system functions very satisfactorily when the chamber Il is given a capacity varying from 12% to 20% of the compressed volume of the combustion space of the cylinder I. T'he size of the passage I8 may vary somewhat with the volume of the compartment i1. It is believed that this size should be such that the velocity of inflow of air to the chamber I1 during the compression stroke is somewhat greater than the velocity. of the fuel jet. It has been found that the jet will pass through the passage I8 under such conditions andbe ignited therebeyond in the cylinder 3. It has also been found that the system operates advantageously when the quantity of fuel held in the duct i4 of chamber and across the head of the piston in a desired manner.` This is particularly advantageous vin large engines. This even distribution of fuel and gases from the injector is obtained by the use of the redirecting distributor which,`in

the embodiment illustrated, is screwed to the cap Figure 1, or in the passages 3l of Figure 5, is

about one and one-half times the full load charge of fuel, namely the quantity of fuel injected into each cylinder at each injection when operating under full load.

The conditions under which injection devices must be applied to large engines, such, for instance, as slow-speed stationary engines, are usually different from those which obtain' in the The mechanical arrangement of the engine sometimes has a` marked influence upon this problem. Figures 9 and 10 illustrate one way in which this invention may be applied to larger engines and engines where the mechanical arrangements are such. that the injection device must reach the cylinder through the head.

.Referring to Figures 9.and 10, a jacketed cylinder 3 is illustrated provided with a head 38, also water-jacketed. The piston is illustrated at 39. In this arrangement the injection unit is inserted through a vertical bore in the head. The unit illustrated in this case is similar to that shown in the other figures'. In this case, however, if the unit were used in unmodified form, the injectionl jet would enter the cylinder along the axis thereof and impinge directly on the piston head. In order to distribute the injected fuel to better advantage and so as to promote and control turbulence in the combustionspace, the injection unit in this case is provided with a distributor 49 which may be attached to the end of the cap i6 -by threading as shown, or in any other suitable manner. This distributor is provided with a plurality of exit passages Il whose combined area is preferably greater than the area. of the passage I8. The bottom wall of the distributor 40 may be provided with an elevated central part 42 adapted to divide the stream of fuel and distribute it among the several passages Il. These passages may be directed at an angle to the radius of the distributor, as shown in Figure 9, so as to promote a swirling movement of the injected fuel, as indicated by the arrows in Figure 9.

Figure l0 shows the injector placed in the head the fuel from the injector and the gases from the I6 of the injector. The openings Ii in the cap can be arranged so as to create any desired turbulence in the cylinder and combustion chamber.

Figure 9 is a section through the distributor showing the openings arranged so as to produce a controlled swirling movement to the burning fuel and air in the cylinder.

It will be noted that the redirecting function exercised by the cap 40 is active not only while the jet of fuel is being projected through the passage I8, but also during'that part of the combustion period during which combustion is taking place in the chamber l1 and the products of combustion are flowing through the passage I8 and into the combustion space in the cylinder.

At this time a very high pressure is developed in the chamber I1 and the products of combustion are ejected therefrom at a very high velocity. Accordingly, the outflow of these products from the passages 4i will take place at a high velocity and in such a manner as to promote a high degree of turbulence in the combustion space in the cylinder.

Under certain circumstances the cap 40 may become very hot. Accordingly, it has been found yadvantageous under such circumstances to construct said cap of a material capable of withstanding a high degree of heat. A material which has been found satisfactory for this purpose is stainless steel, although, of course, other materials having the right properties may alsobe used.

The high temperattue of this cap has the additional advantage of heating and vaporizing the fuel as it impinges thereon.

While a certain theory of operation has been used to explain the action of the engine, it will be understood, of course, that this is.for the purpose of explanation and that the invention is not dependent upon, nor limited to, any given theory. It is further pointed out that certain individual features or sub-combinations may be useful by themselves or in other groupings than those described, and that the employment of such features or sub-combinations is contemplated by this invention when within the scope of the appended claims. It is further obvious that changes in the details of construction may be made within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of this invention, and that the invention is not limited to the specific details shown and described.

'of an engine and so arranged as to distribute The invention having thus been described, what nozzle being positioned and arranged Within said storage chamber but close enough to said passage to project its fuel jet through said passage to be ignited therebeyond.

air therein and having a fuel duct connected with 10 said duct through said body, the tip of said nozzle being positioned and arranged within said storage chamber but close enough to said passage to project its fuel jet through said passage to be ignited therebeyond, a valve in said nozzle having an elongated stem extending along said fuel ducts, a piston on the outer portion of said stem, and a. fuel-supply connection communicating with said ducts between said valve and said piston.

WALKER M. PATE. HARVEY E. BURGDoRF.

CERTIFICATE oF CORRECTION. l Patent No, 2,516,887. l April 2o, 19M.

wALKER n. BAIE; ET AI..

It is hereby certified that error appears in the prix'xted specification of the abovenumbered patent requiring correction as' follows: Page 2, second Column, line r(0-71, for*'combustion read -l-cpmpression--g and that the said Let'ter; Patent shoulbel read with this correction-therein that the same may confqm to the record of the case injzhe Radiant Office'.

signed and sealed this 29th day of-June, A. D. 1915.v

Henry Van rsdale, (Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

